Knott Boxes for Better Drying

[Knott Collective]

We've developed some very simple, low cost, scalable and reusable gear that we utilize for drying. We employ cardboard boxes and coat hangers. Available at Home Depot, the 3 cubic foot "medium" box is just right. You've probably got way too many coat hangers already.

We try to slow the drying process with 10-14 days as a target. We've found that slowing the drying process results in a much better outcome. Here on the west coast our humidity can get ridiculously dry, sometimes in the single digit range. If we dried our buds in these conditions in as little as three days we would have an inferior product.

When harvesting we pull the fan leaves and cut branches to form a "V" so they can be hung upside down for the drying process. We cut them to a length that fits the boxes without allowing the tips to strike the ground and this length is perfect for the trimmers. Easy for them to handle. We can also easily move the boxes to a remote trimming facility away from the main facilities (for security reasons).

Here's a box ready to move to the trimmers:


OMG - it's full of Super Lemon Haze!


We make flaps on the sides of the boxes that we can open up and regulate the amount of air circulation. First day/night the flaps are all open to knock the moisture content down below 85% or so but then we close them up and go as slowly as possible. We sort of "burp" the boxes every day or two and check the progress.


The branches are cut so they don't drag the ground. As you might see we do not finish trim at this point. The sugar leaves will wrap down around the buds as it drys and this keeps much more of the aroma in the product. In my humble opinion the boxes seem to have a similar effect - they keep all the stanky goodness concentrated as the drying process transpires. The nose on this Lemon is off the charts.


Last run of Lemon was especially productive. We ran out of boxes and we've got a lot of them. Had to run down to HD and get a dozen more. I took a shot as the guys were putting them together. At this point the flaps are not cut but you can see the holes made in the side of the boxes. They're 3" apart and a few inches below the top. Easy to cut and bend a coat hanger, then stick the bent ends in the holes in the box. We tape the flaps down on the hangers to keep them in place. Easy, easy. easy.


Every run is slightly different. We watch the progress carefully and try to go into the 5 gallon airtight buckets at about 65-70%. We also "burp" the buckets and slowly settle into the perfect 60-62%. Works for us. may work for you.

Please take what you need and leave the rest.

Peace & Out.

 

[ram937]

I might try this. I've found that drying is the hardest part of the whole process. Thanks for the tip.

 

[Knott Collective]

I might try this. I've found that drying is the hardest part of the whole process. Thanks for the tip.

Yea, it's almost an art form to see exactly when to both pull the buds and then dry them perfectly so that approximately 62% moisture is evenly distributed throughout the final product. We've had pretty good luck with this method because not only does it allow the dry to be slowed and controlled, it also allows it to be slowed by the individual boxes. If we have a box with smaller buds we will treat it a bit differently than a box with big fat colas. The smaller buds will be opened for less duration at the beginning and then closed more during the drying cycle. The big fat buds will be opened longer, watched very carefully and inspected more frequently or "burped" to avoid any mold issues.

The 5 gallon food-grade buckets we use for curing get filled at intermittent points during a given harvest. Usually the smaller, faster drying buds will reach the right condition first so in they go. Next the medium sized buds are ready and in they go too. Finally the main colas are ready for the buckets so they are usually last to go in. We try to mix up the sizes of the buds so each bucket is as good as any other.

Watching the buckets is the last thing and we go strictly by the hygrometer. At 63-65% they're ready. For some of our collective members who hold the product a bit longer we'll finish up theirs a bit higher for slightly great "shelf life." So we'll stop at 65-68% for these situations.

 

[jaibyrd7]

is it me or does 60+% seem really wet? I have those little 1" hygrometers from petco stuck inside all my jar lids and I burp them down to 30% over the first 4 weeks, then down to 20% over the next 4. the flowers are then sealed and stored. they come out dry enough for easy grinding and still sticky as hell and burns to a nice clean white ash. im just wondering, bc if i seal them up at 65%, 4 months later, I have a jar full of moldy flowers.
isn't it crazy how 1 person does one thing and is happy and someone else does the complete opposite and gets the results they want?
the cardboard is a great idea too. I used to use those big uhaul wardrobe boxes. they were big enough to do a decent harvest and throw a 4" inline fan and scrubber in the bottom, link a couple more together with ducting and not have to stink up the whole neighborhood. wow does that shit get loud when you chop it!

 

[mr mustache]

We've developed some very simple, low cost, scalable and reusable gear that we utilize for drying. We employ cardboard boxes and coat hangers. Available at Home Depot, the 3 cubic foot "medium" box is just right. You've probably got way too many coat hangers already.

We try to slow the drying process with 10-14 days as a target. We've found that slowing the drying process results in a much better outcome. Here on the west coast our humidity can get ridiculously dry, sometimes in the single digit range. If we dried our buds in these conditions in as little as three days we would have an inferior product.

When harvesting we pull the fan leaves and cut branches to form a "V" so they can be hung upside down for the drying process. We cut them to a length that fits the boxes without allowing the tips to strike the ground and this length is perfect for the trimmers. Easy for them to handle. We can also easily move the boxes to a remote trimming facility away from the main facilities (for security reasons).

Here's a box ready to move to the trimmers:
View attachment 3330795

OMG - it's full of Super Lemon Haze!
View attachment 3330796

We make flaps on the sides of the boxes that we can open up and regulate the amount of air circulation. First day/night the flaps are all open to knock the moisture content down below 85% or so but then we close them up and go as slowly as possible. We sort of "burp" the boxes every day or two and check the progress.
View attachment 3330797

The branches are cut so they don't drag the ground. As you might see we do not finish trim at this point. The sugar leaves will wrap down around the buds as it drys and this keeps much more of the aroma in the product. In my humble opinion the boxes seem to have a similar effect - they keep all the stanky goodness concentrated as the drying process transpires. The nose on this Lemon is off the charts.
View attachment 3330801

Last run of Lemon was especially productive. We ran out of boxes and we've got a lot of them. Had to run down to HD and get a dozen more. I took a shot as the guys were putting them together. At this point the flaps are not cut but you can see the holes made in the side of the boxes. They're 3" apart and a few inches below the top. Easy to cut and bend a coat hanger, then stick the bent ends in the holes in the box. We tape the flaps down on the hangers to keep them in place. Easy, easy. easy.
View attachment 3330805

Every run is slightly different. We watch the progress carefully and try to go into the 5 gallon airtight buckets at about 65-70%. We also "burp" the buckets and slowly settle into the perfect 60-62%. Works for us. may work for you.

Please take what you need and leave the rest.

Peace & Out.

Used to do something similar with those giant tupperware "tote" bins... Works really well. Nice post.

 

[Rrog]

I dry to 68-70% for first week. I feel there's some metabolism of chlorophyll still available if Rh is high enough.

Then using a bunch of small hygrometers I slowly bring the Rh to low 60s.and there's where I jar it for long term.

I like the cardboard idea, as it can absorb / release some moisture, unlike totes and bags. Seems like that'd be a good thing.

Obviously the little vents that can be done with cardboard makes this really interesting.

 

[Mr. HighGuy]

We've developed some very simple, low cost, scalable and reusable gear that we utilize for drying. We employ cardboard boxes and coat hangers. Available at Home Depot, the 3 cubic foot "medium" box is just right. You've probably got way too many coat hangers already.

We try to slow the drying process with 10-14 days as a target. We've found that slowing the drying process results in a much better outcome. Here on the west coast our humidity can get ridiculously dry, sometimes in the single digit range. If we dried our buds in these conditions in as little as three days we would have an inferior product.

When harvesting we pull the fan leaves and cut branches to form a "V" so they can be hung upside down for the drying process. We cut them to a length that fits the boxes without allowing the tips to strike the ground and this length is perfect for the trimmers. Easy for them to handle. We can also easily move the boxes to a remote trimming facility away from the main facilities (for security reasons).

Here's a box ready to move to the trimmers:
View attachment 3330795

OMG - it's full of Super Lemon Haze!
View attachment 3330796

We make flaps on the sides of the boxes that we can open up and regulate the amount of air circulation. First day/night the flaps are all open to knock the moisture content down below 85% or so but then we close them up and go as slowly as possible. We sort of "burp" the boxes every day or two and check the progress.
View attachment 3330797

The branches are cut so they don't drag the ground. As you might see we do not finish trim at this point. The sugar leaves will wrap down around the buds as it drys and this keeps much more of the aroma in the product. In my humble opinion the boxes seem to have a similar effect - they keep all the stanky goodness concentrated as the drying process transpires. The nose on this Lemon is off the charts.
View attachment 3330801

Last run of Lemon was especially productive. We ran out of boxes and we've got a lot of them. Had to run down to HD and get a dozen more. I took a shot as the guys were putting them together. At this point the flaps are not cut but you can see the holes made in the side of the boxes. They're 3" apart and a few inches below the top. Easy to cut and bend a coat hanger, then stick the bent ends in the holes in the box. We tape the flaps down on the hangers to keep them in place. Easy, easy. easy.
View attachment 3330805

Every run is slightly different. We watch the progress carefully and try to go into the 5 gallon airtight buckets at about 65-70%. We also "burp" the buckets and slowly settle into the perfect 60-62%. Works for us. may work for you.

Please take what you need and leave the rest.

Peace & Out.

THANKS MAN!! this method is Sick, works great & poormans dream lol... great write-up

Sent from my SGH-M919 using Rollitup mobile app

 

[az2000]

if i seal them up at 65%, 4 months later, I have a jar full of moldy flowers.

Have you checked the calibration of your hygrometers? I seal mine in a mason jar with boveda pack(s). I use Excalibur IV which has a +/- calibration. I've had to adjust all of them 1-3%.

I've heard of other hygrometers being very far off.

 

[az2000]

We've developed some very simple, low cost, scalable and reusable gear that we utilize for drying. We employ cardboard boxes and coat hangers.

Your post comes at a great time. I've been having an idea to use a humidity-controlled switch to manage the drying process. I've been trying to think of how to test the concept before investing in something like a tent or cabinet. Your post showed me how to do it.

I'm going out today to buy a wardrobe box and will build something like your setup. I'll attach a 4" duct booster or computer-case fan, and the $15 humidity controller. The way I see this working is as you described: set the switch to 82-85% to get it there quickly. Then walk it down 1-2% every day to 63-65%. That would be 10 days if the controller adjusted 2% lower each day.

The controller makes it easy. Just hit the down-arrow every day to change the LED display. No opening flaps, keeping an eye on it, remembering to close the flaps (I forget *a lot*).

I'm looking more at a larger dry cabinet to hold the harvest of 4-5 plants. Use color-coded Ecco clamps to identify which branches belong to which strain. You seem to be using individual boxes for scalability (1 box for small harvest, 2 for large, individual boxes for each strain). Makes perfect sense. But, would be costly to install humidity controllers and fans in each one. Thus my gravitation toward a larger and more permanent cabinet or tent. I'll start with a 2x2x3 tall wardrobe box. Maybe combine two for a larger box. Then convert to a utility cabinet or 2x4 tent for a more permanent enclosure.

(I'm even thinking about some canvas fabric covering a PVC pipe frame. The vertical legs could telescope to allow expansion of the enclosure to fit the harvest size. For example, 1/2" sched 40 will slip inside 1". But, I'm over-thinking it now. That's why your cardboard box idea comes at a good time. That's an easy way for me to see how well this climate-control idea works. Gets me out of over-thinking mode and into doing mode.).